The Poetic Conception of Home

In the summer of 1968, Catalan sculptor Xavier
Corberó began his never-ending pursuit of creating a home.

Situated in the Barcelona suburb of
Esplugues de Llobregat, he designed and built a 48,000 sf structure spreading
over nine interconnected buildings with more than a dozen courtyards, all
nestled among more than 300 archways.

His obsessive endeavor started by purchasing a
former potato farm with a plan to build his dream house. As his architectural
ambition grew, so did his sculptural commissions, allowing him to acquire
adjacent buildings that dared to restrain his vision.

"I became an artisan because I know that there
is something in nature that overwhelms me more than myself, more than humanity.
And I think that sculpture from the
very beginning of time has always been something to remind you of that."

When asked what was his intention when he began
working on the structure he explains that whether it’s sculptures, buildings or
spaces, the outcome of what he does has to be poetry, which he believes
to be the measure of all things.

Once he began working on his home in 1968, he
did not stop building until his death in April of last year. It remained as a
work in progress for almost 50 years. The exteriors made of concrete, stack at
different heights creating imposing sculptures surrounded by overgrown
vegetation and bodies of water. The interiors are a collection of whitewashed and
wood cave-like rooms that host the living quarters, studios, workshops and
galleries.

The backbone of the complex is the monumental
six-story glass atrium, referred to as "The Tower," where Corberó spent most of
his time. It is built on a circular base in which the walls that surround it
form an octagon, making the tower act like a kaleidoscope.

Some doors open electronically, revealing an
unlikely room and others take you outdoors. A staircase leads you to a corridor
and others to nowhere. Although the magnitude of the complex is impressive, it
is never felt while inhabiting the interior spaces. The scale and play of light
evoke an idea of continuity without feeling overwhelming. His ultimate goal was
to create a place in which the mental space, not the real one, is what matters.

"What I try to do does not
stream from reason, but life itself… I use reason to build things up, so they
don’t fall to pieces. But the motives behind all the rest are aesthetic, ethic
and, if you will, divine."

Xavier Corberó’s house reflects more than an
architectural and sculptural masterpiece of an artist, but the life of a man
with an insatiable desire to create that is both enviable and inspiring. One
who understood that in life, there’s always more work to be done.